Interview: Pierce Brosnan

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Brosnan talks Laws of Attraction, After the Sunset, Bond, and more.

By Jeff Otto

American audiences first discovered Pierce Brosnan in the '80s spy/romance TV cult hit, Remington Steele. He played small movie roles and character parts in the years that proceeded. His big break came in the mid-1990s at the hands of MGM. Their phenomenally successful James Bond Franchise had hit a brick wall. Timothy Dalton was off the series and it was unclear if the longest running series featuring a single character in movie history would hit its untimely end.

Rumors began circulating, ranging the gambit from popular American actors that seemed completely wrong for the part to various lesser and unknown actors. When the choice of Pierce Brosnan was announced, just about everyone, fans and laymen alike, were pleased. Brosnan seemed a natural to play the dashing British super agent. As a kid, Brosnan was a huge admirer of the Connery Bond films and Remington Steele was clearly an homage to the Bond character.

With the release of GoldenEye, Brosnan was launched into international superstardom. He has played Bond three times since, turning in acclaimed performances in between Bond films in The Thomas Crown Affair, Evelyn and others. Now, with Laws of Attraction, Brosnan attempts to succeed in one of the trickiest and often most dangerous dramas: The romantic comedy. I think most of us can name a slew of terrible romantic comedies we've seen in the past few years alone. The genre is given very little credit as a result.

When done right, however, the romantic comedy genre can produce great films. Bringing Up Baby, Sabrina, It Happened One Night, the great romantic comedies are years removed from today's cookie-cutter tales of that perfect closing credit kiss. Brosnan hopes that Laws of Attraction will prove a return to the kind of old fashioned adult comedy that can make for the perfect Friday night date movie. Casting one of the top actresses working in film today, Julianne Moore, is a pretty darn good start.

Moore and Brosnan play divorce lawyers Audrey Woods and Daniel Rafferty. Both are at the top of their game professionally, but missing out on the social side of life. Brosnan appears a bumbling fool on the surface, but this is just a facade for him, something that often gets his opposing council to put their guard down. Woods is an uptight workaholic. She doesn't believe in marriage and is determined to expose Rafferty for the fraud he is. It doesn't work. In fact, it turns out Rafferty is just as good a lawyer as she is, albeit with different methods. The two become legendary rivals in the divorce courts of New York, their out of court relationship gradually shifts from repulsion to romance.

Brosan in Laws of Attraction

At the Four Seasons in Los Angeles, the press day for Laws of Attraction was held. The film has had a generally positive reception and, entering our room, James Bond himself seems to be in a good mood. Brosnan wears his familiar half smirk and appears dressed for a casual day on the beach.

As I mentioned, the romantic comedy genre has taken its share of abuse in recent years. Laws was clearly intended as a throwback to the kind of intelligent adult romances of yesteryear. We asked Brosnan which romantic comedies influenced him here. "Well, I really didn't come to the realization of what romantic comedies were until I was in my late teens. Early twenties, really. My teenage years, Clint Eastwood, Steve McQueen, Warren Beatty. They were my cinematic heroes. It wasn't until I came to America when I was 26 to do Remington Steele. Bob Butler was executive producer, director, and creator of Remington Steele and he said that we are doing an old-fashioned romantic comedy. And I began to investigate and look closely at the Cary Grant movies. Spencer Tracy. He was a name that I grew up with because my grandfather loved Spencer Tracy movies. By that time, I was a mature actor. I realized how brilliant they were. They played them with such a ferocious pace of dialogue. That was my first encounter. Going back to Bob Butler, he said this is what we're making. I swam in those waters for many weeks prior to shooting Remington Steele..."